He Ara Kotahi bridge nears completion
Palmerston North’s He Ara Kotahi bridge is almost complete, but it will be April before the connecting pathways and ramps are in place and it is ready for use.
Contractors were up before dawn yesterday pouring 130 cubic metres of concrete for the deck of the 190-metre-long cycle and pedestrian bridge.
Project manager Rob Green said all that remained was for the concrete to dry, with one final coat of bauxite to finish the surfacing.
Green said while the bridge and pathway to Linton project had been in the making for 31⁄2 years, progress on the bridge structure had been rapid since work began on site in February.
‘‘Once the deck is done and they’ve put the final ribs on the sides, they can pull out of the river.’’
Permanent hand rails are also still to be installed.
The next five months of the $14.6 million project will involve creating the plaza area on Dittmer Drive opposite Ruha St, reinstating and sealing the shared pathway running under the bridge, and forming on and off ramps on both sides of the river.
In other parts of the project, the increasingly visible bridge over the Turitea Stream has its deck in place, and the boardwalk up to the bluff is about to take shape. The second stage of the pathway beyond the Turitea Stream is well under way.
Tenders for the final stage, including a 45m-long swing bridge over the Kahuterawa Stream and the extended pathway to Bells Rd at Linton, will close later in November.
Design work is under way for that final part of the project, the only part that may not be completed when the rest is opened for use in April.